AIDS Vaccine Test Produces Immune Response in 6

AP

Published: May 1, 1988

WASHINGTON, April 30—
The first American test of an experimental AIDS vaccine has produced an immune response in six volunteers, an important step toward developing an effective vaccine against the disease, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said today.

The institute said the six men showed the immune reaction to injections of a purified protein, gp160, derived from a portion of the human immunodeficiency virus, HIV, that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome. An immune response is determined when the test subject's blood develops antibodies against the vaccine that was injected. Recently a French researcher reported that a different experimental vaccine had also stimulated an immune response. Many steps remain before such work results in an AIDS vaccine. Indeed, scientists are still not certain that a vaccine preventing infection with the virus will be possible.

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the infectious diseases institute, said the American vaccine tests were conducted to determine if the vaccine derived from gp160 was safe and if it evoked an immune response. He said the results were now positive to both questions.

''It is clear that it is safe, and the study indicates that several volunteers did develop an immune response,'' he said.

The test was also designed to help determine the proper dosage of the vaccine for maximum beneficial effect.

A report on the study was presented at the annual meeting of the American Foundation for Clinical Research.

The next step is to remove antibodies from the test subjects and determine if these antibodies will react in test tubes to the AIDS virus. This would establish if the test subjects had developed a reaction that provided protection against the disease. The test of gp160 started with four groups totaling 59 volunteers. They are homosexual men who, tests indicated, were not carriers of the AIDS virus. Scientists believe there is no danger that the volunteers will develop AIDS from the experiments because they are not being injected with crucial portions of the virus.

Each of the four groups received injections of a different strength of the gp160.

Two subjects in a group that received the injections but no booster shots developed immune response. Four of a group that received both the initial shot and a booster also developed immune response.

The study will continue with a group of volunteers receiving an even stronger dose of the gp160 vaccine.